Three Big Things From the Florida Chamber Federation Call with Commissioner Adam Putnam

Thank you for joining special guest, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, on last week’s Florida Chamber Federation monthly call. We appreciated the opportunity to discuss the importance of workforce development and its impact on the future of Florida.

If you missed last week’s call, here are three big things you need to know:

1 Increasing Access to High-Quality Education and Career Training: Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam shared his Putting Florida First plan on the call and explained that workforce and vocational training is a key tenant to ensuring Florida has the jobs it needs to be successful in a global economy. Florida has a range of jobs that aren’t being filled due to the skills gap – nursing, cybersecurity and aviation for example – and must be addressed by expanding workforce and vocational training for Floridians.

2 Putting a Focus on Students: Commissioner Putnam believes Florida has done a great job in closing achievement gaps in education for those where English is a second language and those in low-income households, but have fallen behind for those students who aren’t planning to go to a traditional four-year university. Commissioner Putnam plans to put more focus on these students, starting before they get into high school, to ensure that they can find a high quality job after high school.

3 State Colleges Believe Their Students are Ready for the Workforce: State colleges turn out triple the amount of degrees than the university system, with graduates comprising a significant portion of Florida’s workforce. According to a study shared by Commissioner Putnam, 96 percent of state college leaders believe their students are ready to enter the workforce. Only one-third of employers believe that. The stigma surrounding state colleges needs to change.

Is Florida’s Workforce Ready?
Florida has 10.1 million workers in its workforce, third largest in the nation. Florida needs to create an integrated talent ecosystem to provide a sustainable, skilled workforce that ensures the current and future prosperity of Florida employers, employees, and residents. Learn more about Florida’s blueprint for the future – The Florida 2030 project – here.

Florida Chamber is Proud to Endorse Adam Putnam
Looking at the next eight years, Florida needs a leader who knows Florida and can keep Florida’s momentum going. Adam Putnam is that leader. Learn more about Adam Putnam here.